SCIENTISTS TAKE TO
THE FLORIDA SKIES TO FIND EVERGLADES MERCURY SOURCE

A team of federal and state scientists,
using a uniquely outfitted airplane, have begun a series of flights
off the Florida coast that will allow researchers to identify
the forms of mercury present in Florida skies that get deposited
on land and water. Mercury is a major concern because it can
accumulate in the aquatic food web and cause toxic effects to
wildlife, especially fish-eating predators.

Modified by NOAA
to carry research instruments, the Twin
Otter offers a unique capability to explore atmospheric deposition
of pollution. Using new measurement methods developed by EPA and the Florida
DEP, the plane will help researchers identify forms of very
low levels of mercury present in Florida skies as the agencies
work to understand elevated mercury compounds found in the Everglades.

Mercury in several of Florida freshwater
fish species has been recognized by the state and EPA's Regional
Office in Atlanta as reaching some of the highest concentrations
in the Southeast. The problem is most critical in the Everglades,
a unique environment of grassy marshlands and tree islands that
is home to a variety of plants and animals.

The Florida DEP, EPA, NOAA and several
other state and federal agencies have worked for several years
on a series of studies of mercury in the Everglades, including
the waters, fish, wildlife, and sediments. In 1998, EPA and the
Florida DEP developed and validated a unique method of measuring
very low levels of the water-soluble form of mercury in the atmosphere
(between one and several thousand pictograms per cubic meter
of air). Although these concentrations are very low, this form
of mercury deposits on land and water very efficiently, and the
environmental repercussions are severe.

The study began with a set of flights in
January; a second set of flights will continue through June 30.
Ten flights will be made at various altitudes about 100 miles
east of Fort Lauderdale, Fla. In addition to various forms of
mercury, scientists will also measure other pollutants, such
as ozone, sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, freons,
trace elements, and total particle concentrations.

The Broward
County Division of Air Quality in Florida is making its laboratories
available for the study and providing other assistance. The EPA
and NOAA anticipate a preliminary report summarizing the findings
of the mercury study in the fall.